Behavioral Model Report 

Social approach task

The social approach task is used to measure (assess) social behaviors or deficiencies in mice. In the social approach task, there is a 3 chambered paradigm which the test mouse is placed into. The test mouse (whose behavior is being observed) is placed into the middle chamber, and on one of the sides of the chamber, a mouse that is familiar to the test mouse is placed in a wired cage; and on the other side of the chamber, a "stranger" mouse is placed in a wired cage. The test mouse is allowed to roam freely within the three chambers, and this is when the behavior of the test mouse is assessed. The behavior that is assessed is whether the mouse spends more time in the chamber with the mouse that is familiar or whether the mouse spends more time in the chamber with the mouse that is a "stranger". The way the sociability of the mouse is defined is determined by whether the mouse spends more time in the chamber with the mouse that is more familiar or whether it spends more time in the chamber with the mouse that it is a "stranger".